Latvia 2
Visnakovs 32; Rudnevs 84;
Malta 0
It was always going to be difficult for Malta to make light of the absences of Michael Mifsud, Daniel Bogdanovic and Jonathan Caruana in yesterday’s Euro 2012 qualifier in Latvia.
For much of the first half, it looked as though Malta had forgotten how to attack without skipper Mifsud as they looked desperately short of verve, inspiration and confidence.
Even a five-metre pass in midfield became a complicated task as Malta struggled to adapt to the slick pitch and the fast-moving ball, ceding possession too easily to Latvia who swarmed forward from the off.
Such was the poverty of Malta’s attacking play in the opening half, that our team didn’t fashion a single noteworthy chance while Latvia will have headed for the half-time break wondering how they were only one goal to the good.
As the second half got underway, it soon became apparent that the 15-minute pause had helped the Maltese to refocus and shake off the age-old psychological inhibitions as John Buttigieg’s men began to cause Latvia more problems up front.
Whereas in the opening period, Malta’s five midfielders hardly skipped the halfway line with the result that lone striker Andre Schembri cut a peripheral figure up front, they began to venture forward in the second.
Still, Malta lacked the cutting edge to breach Latvia’s defence and luck was also not on our part as, early in the second half, left-back Clayton Failla’s drive cannoned off the two posts.
A second goal for Latvia destroyed Malta’s hopes of gaining a morale-boosting result ahead of Tuesday’s final qualifier against Israel at the National Stadium.
Malta’s disappointment was further compounded by the news that Failla and Andrew Cohen will be suspended for the Israel game after both collected their second yellow card yesterday.
Steve Borg made his bow for the national team as the Valletta defender was handed the onerous task of stepping in for the injured Caruana.
The unavailability of Mifsud, Malta’s all-time top scorer with 30 goals, and Bogdanovic induced Buttigieg to tweak his tactical strategy as he set his team out in a 4-3-2-1 formation.
Schembri was Malta’s attacking fulcrum with Ryan Fenech and Cohen picking up the two wide midfield positions.
The tactical switch paved the way for Jamie Pace’s recall to the first team as the Valletta powerhouse lined up alongside John Hutchinson and Gareth Sciberras in central midfield, the latter taking up the holding role.
At the back, Andrei Agius and Borg were the two centre-halves with Roderick Briffa, the stand-in captain yesterday, and Clayton Failla patrolling the right and left flanks respectively.
In goal, Buttigieg kept faith with Andrew Hogg.
Local optimism that Latvia’s commendable results in their previous two outings would elicit renewed interest for their final home qualifier against Malta proved misplaced as the compact Skonto Stadium was half-empty.
In the stand behind the two dug-outs, three spectators un-furled a Maltese flag.
The opening 10 minutes were devoid of goalmouth action as Malta, in an all-white outfit, repelled Latvia’s efforts.
When Aleksejs Visnakovs cut in from the right, danger loomed for Malta but the Latvia winger blasted wide.
Visnakovs’s movement was causing Malta problems. On one occasion, the Cracovia winger now striding forward through the middle, guided a through-pass to Artjoms Rudnevs who created space for a shot inside the box but his effort was off target.
Rudnevs, who is on the books of Lech Poznan, and Maris Verpakovskis, of FC Baku, were the two central strikers in Latvia’s 4-4-2-cum-4-3-3 formation.
Latvia’s possession count increased as the first half moved past the 15th minute.
A couple of teasing crosses from the left soared dangerously towards the centre of Malta’s box but the stocky Borg headed the ball clear.
On 24 minutes, Rudnevs peeled off Borg and advanced along the byline before hitting a low cross that was cut out by the backtracking Sciberras.
Until this juncture, Malta had offered little going forward as Latvia dictated the tempo of the game, in the process consigning the opponents to their own half.
Latvia’s pressure produced a breakthrough on 32 minutes.
The damage again originated from the right as the speeding Verpakovskis drew Failla wide before passing to Visnakovs who glided past the wrong-footed Agius and drilled his shot past Hogg from inside the penalty box.
Minutes later, Malta won a free-kick deep into Latvia’s half but Failla’s central drive was easily blocked by Vanins.
In the closing stages of the first half, Oskars Klava headed wide from Aleksandrs Cauna’s corner.
The sight of three Latvia players breaking forward through the middle caused panic in the Malta defence.
Having retrieved possession, Briffa tried to play his way out of trouble only to be robbed of the ball by Rudnevs. He released Verpakovskis whose curling chip cannoned off the crossbar.
Three minutes from the start of the second half had elapsed when Cauna’s cross-cum-shot from a left-wing free-kick was pawed away by Hogg.
Forced to chase their opponents for most of the first half, Malta clearly needed to pass the ball better and pluck up more confidence to attack Latvia if they were to stem the tide.
When Buttigieg’s men pieced together a series of good passing moves, Latvia teetered at the back.
Fourteen minutes into the second half, Malta were unlucky not to equalise as Failla’s well-hit strike from the distance seeped through a thicket of players but the ball, having hit the base of the far post, whistled across the goalline – some contended the ball had crossed in – and came off the other post.
Schembri lunged forward to try and hit home the loose ball but Kaspar Gorks darted past the Malta striker and deflected the ball away for a corner.
At the other end, Hogg prevented Latvia going 2-0 up, pushing Ivans Lukjanovs’s header over the bar from Cauna’s corner.
Malta were now driving forward with more purpose and, encouraged by his team’s attacking revival, Buttigieg hauled off Pace in favour of the more attack-minded Ivan Woods who went on to position himself behind Schembri.
The Maltese were now seeing more of the ball, their pressure clearly unsettling Latvia who found it hard to reclaim the upperhand.
A rare counter-attack by the hosts unlocked the Malta defence as Lukjanovs charged clear on the left before picking out the unmarked Verpakovskis who looked certain to score but his piledriver from close range brought a top-drawer save from Hogg.
Carlo Mamo and Paul Fenech came on for Ryan Fenech and Sciberras respectively as Buttigieg played his last cards but Latvia applied the killer touch six minutes from time.
Visnakovs was the catalyst as he embarked on another incursion down the right before hitting a low cross into the six-yard box.
Malta looked to have averted the danger as Hogg cut out the cross but the ball squirmed into the path of Rudnevs who poked home from routine distance.
In stoppage time, Cohen dipped his free-kick beyond Latvia’s de-fensive wall but Vanins punched clear.
Latvia: A. Vanins, O. Klava, P. Mihadjuks, O. Laizans (75 R. Rugins), D. Ivanovs, A. Visnakovs, A. Cauna, M. Verpakovskis (90 A. Rubins), I. Lukjanovs, K. Gorks, A. Rudnevs (88 E. Gauracs).
Malta: A. Hogg, S. Borg, G. Sciberras (83 P. Fenech), A. Agius, R. Fenech (82 C. Mamo), C. Failla, R. Briffa, A. Cohen, J. Hutchinson, A. Schembri, J. Pace (70 I. Woods).
Referee: Richard Trutz (Slovakia FA).
Yellow cards: Cohen; Failla; Agius; Lukjanovs; Gorks.
Attendance: 4,315.
Malta Players’ Ratings
Hogg-6.5, Borg-6.5, Sciberras-6, Agius-6.5, Fenech-5.5, Failla-6.5, Briffa-6, Cohen-5, Hutchinson-5.5, Schembri-5.5, Pace-5.
Substitute: Woods-5.